Nhu Pham, MD, Internal Medicine, John Muir Medical Group

I came to the US from Viet Nam when I was 10 years old. When we first came to this country, wealwayshad to go to county and low-income health facilities. This taught me that everyone deserved quality health care, and pushed me toward medicine. I went to high school in San Jose, California, did my undergrad at UC Davis, medical school at Tufts University and residency at The New England Medical Center. I chose Internal Medicine because I like the focus on the individual and the long term relationships that develop.

I came back to the SF Bay Area because of family, which is a high priority for me. My familyisinSan Jose, and my husband's family is in Los Angeles. I just had my third child, and I want them to be close to their grandparents. Living in the East Bay, we get all the benefits of a major city, but it's less costly than living in San Francisco. I really like the East Bay for its schools and family orientation.

All the doctors here are great-I love working with them. Patients here are very educated, they wanttohelp themselves and they are compliant. The whole community has been very supportive.

When I was in school, I didn't really know what the real practice world was like. As a resident,I worked, worked, worked. I got a recruiting letter from the John Muir Physician Network, came out and interviewed, and looked at two of their practices. I chose this office because we just clicked right off the bat. They tailor to what I need. I needed to cut back after my 3rd baby was born in January, and they were fine with that. I work 4 days per week now and make more money than I did in Boston, where the cost of living is similar.

The John Muir Physician Network makes it easy--I don't have any problems with day-to-day activities. They help me build my practice, provide a medical assistant, minimize my paperwork and run the office. The front desk people are competent and qualified, and the scheduler is great. I just focus on seeing patients. That's what I wanted. I didn't want to be a small business owner and get bogged down with all the things that would be required if I did own the business. The culture for me is just about our site, and at our site, people are really friendly, polite and courteous. We have a lot of parties and we have fun.

I haven't had to call too many specialists, but when I do, they take my call and answer questions. It's really nice here in that way; the specialists are outstanding and easy to interact with.

I don't really like to drive, especially traffic jams. I live in Walnut Creek, I take side roadstowork, and my commute is 15 minutes. What I like best about the area is that it is very safe, the weather is great, and there are a lot of outdoor activities.

I'm very happy with my decision to come here. The quality of care is very good. The physicians heretake really good care of their patients, and everyone here is very knowledgeable, intelligent and brings a good range of experience. If someone decides to join any practice in this network, she is going to be working with very highly qualified physicians.